Fire and Ice
by lostsword
Summary: After a bad break-up with his former girlfriend, Sokka falls drunkenly into a match made in the deepest depths of hell on the eve of his high school's ten-year anniversary. Very Sokkla. Very mature.
1. Chapter 1

**GREETINGS!**

 _Isn't it amazing that it's already been **TEN YEARS**?!_

 _ **Sokka Sui** , YOU have been invited to attend the_

 ** _Republic City High School Reunion_**

 _In_

 ** _Republic City_**

 _At_

 ** _8924 Ba Soe Road, Republic City High School_**

 _On_

 ** _February 8th, 8:00 RST_**

 _Come and join in the celebration and reunite_

 _with both old and new friends from the glory days!_

 _This card is required for admission into the building_

 _for yourself and one guest (optional)_

 _See you on the **8th**!_


	2. Chapter 2

_Dear Aang and Katara!_

 _I just wanted to write you real quick—my plane is scheduled to leave pretty soon—and let you know that I'll be arriving sooner than expected. I can wait to see you guys again, it's been_ _way_ _too long. The South Pole is still cold as ever, so please don't douse me with water like you did on my last visit._

 _Katara._

 _Anyways, I'll be stopping to pick up my girlfriend before I fly into Republic City—she's been visiting family up around the central colonies—and she's so excited to meet you! I'm telling you, she's the one. I love her so much and I can't wait to introduce you to her at long last. She'll really blow you away!_

 _Well, I have to run! The taxi's outside and my bags are packed. See you soon!_

 _Sokka._

"He sounds good." Aang said, pleased, as he placed the letter back down on the kitchen counter. Katara looked up at him from her spot at the table, reading some sort of medical journal.

"I just hope it isn't some bimbo..."

"Sokka isn't like that...much..." Aang said weakly as he tried to defend his bestfriend.

Katara merely grunted, not happy with the unexpected 'guest' that Sokka had thrown in at the last minute. Truly, she loved having her brother visit, but she was wary of sharing the same roof as his supposed perfect girlfriend.

Suki had been perfect in her mind. Not whoever this lovey dovey woman happened to be. With Suki there had been friendship and memories and trust. With this new woman, all she had heard from Sokka was that she was amazing, wonderful, and perfect.

Aang had been forced to admit that Sokka had revealed her to be _quite_ the bed-mate as well.

That _really_ annoyed her.

"I'm sure you'll both get along fine." Aang said helpfully as he brought over a mug of coffee for his wife.

Oh how _wrong_ he was...

* * *

"YOU FUCKING BITCH!"

Stupid.

SLAM!

So stupid.

Sokka—tears streaming down his face freely—dashed down the hallway of the hotel room that he had just slammed the door on and had just made it to the elevator when _she_ emerged. Her golden hair fell disheveled around her shoulders and her brown eyes begged forgiveness.

"Sokka!"

So. Fucking. Stupid.

"Wait!"

The elevator door closed smoothly with a soft ding just before she had reached him. The metal merged together with a hiss as her fingers failed to reach him.

Fuck.

 _Fuck._

Sokka, still crying in pain, suddenly let out a roar of anger and punched the shiny metal wall of the elevator. The frame bent considerably inward and his hand ached painfully, but he ignored both and barged out of the elevator and into the lobby of the dingy hotel.

"May I assist you s-"

Sokka shoved the concerned manager—he had heard the metal bend even from his spot outside the elevator—to the floor in his anger and blew past several startled guests before he finally came out into the street outside.

He had trusted her.

He stuffed his hands into his pockets and stormed off in a random direction. Any direction. Just not back to the hotel. Not back to _her_ room.

She had been _fucking_ another man.

Snarling, Sokka lost his sense of direction and ignored the passing of time. He just kept walking. And walking. And walking some more.

Eventually the sun had set and by that point he had run out of energy and his tears had stopped flowing. His eyes were blood shot and his mouth quivered heavily as he simply stumbled into the first bar he saw.

She had been his everything.

Sokka tossed the bartender a hundred yen note and sat down with a heart-broken sigh. "I want the strongest thing you have...just keep it coming till I pass out."

The burly colonial bartender inspected the note, nodded in satisfaction at its authenticity—Sokka _was_ pretty well of nowadays—and then proceeded to make Sokka his drink.

He had never met a woman like her. One he understood and felt understood back. One who was fresh and new and didn't make him think of the past. He had thought their relationship to be perfect.

Now it was over.

He had come to get her a day early—a surprise he had looked forward to for weeks—and instead of a happy reunion, he had walked in on her and her boy toy.

Who knew how many boy toys she had?

 _Fuck_.

Sokka lost track of time again as the drinks piled up on him. He took comfort in the searing white pain of the alcohol and the numbness that it quickly brought afterwords. It was the only retreat he could find to escape the pain trying to obliterate his heart.

He didn't remember the start of the fight. He didn't remember the end of the fight. He didn't remember who had been fighting who. All Sokka could remember was _fighting._ He remembered smashing a man's head brutally into the bar. He remembered decking two other drunkards to the deck in his stupor. He even remembered a few gut-wrenching blows delivered to himself.

At some point he found himself out on the street, his body aching and bleeding, as he wandered around. He was lost and he knew it.

But he didn't care.

She was gone.

But he didn't _care_.

He really didn't, he realized suddenly. For all the good that she had brought him, for all the joyous moments they had shared, it wasn't enough to wound him fully. She wasn't Yue. She certainly wasn't Yue. He could get over her.

Or maybe that was just the alcohol speaking, he decided, as he felt the pain seep back into his aching heart. Hiccuping, the drunkard simply lifted the bottle he had kept with him from his wild brawl at the bar and took a healthy swig and kept walking.

As he stumbled down the sidewalk, the world coming and going in a panorama of twisting images, Sokka ended up on a deserted stretch of the small city where everyone had seemed to have gone in for the night.

Except for a roughhousing trio.

"Get off me!"

He watched—through his thickening haze—as the middle member of the group swung their fist straight at the one on the left. It made a crack loud enough for him to hear even in his stupor and the figure slumped to the ground. The one to the right then brought his own fists to bear and the first one crashed to the ground in pain.

"Leave me the hell alone!"

Sokka, even with his hazy mind—or perhaps because of it—reacted in the only way he could.

He used his fists.

"There ain't nothing for you to see here buddy, so get-"

CRACK! CRACK!

Sokka's left fist hit the man's face first, closely followed by his right. His opponent was larger than him by far, and a lot more muscular to boot, but he wasn't prepared for the drunk to assault him.

"Wha-"

THUMP! WHAM!

This time he brought a knee up into the man's stomach before decking him in the face again. This time the brute stayed on the ground, groaning but not completely out cold.

"Mother fucker!" The first figure said as she stood up and kicked the man in the chest, then the face, and finally the stomach. The attacks did little to knock the man out, but it seemed to cool off her immense anger.

"You...you're dead bitch..."

"Screw you!" She said before kicking the man in the balls, effectively shutting him up as he groaned loudly in pain.

Sokka, still drunk but sobering up due to the adrenaline flooding though his system, simply turned around and started to walk off. He made it barely a step before a soft, yet firm, hand found its way to his shoulder.

"Huh? Oh!" Sokka said as he turned to face the woman, "are you okay?"

"S-Sokka?"

He knew that voice.

Oh shit.

"A-Azula?"

* * *

It was weird, in his sluggish mind, to be drinking with Azula Yan. He had hated her with every fiber in his being when they had been in high school. She had tormented his friends and even tried to kill Katara and Zuko at one point. The mere sight of her had sobered him up almost completely, but she had convinced him that she had changed and that she desperately needed a drink.

That had led to him being drunk twice in the same night, not a personal record, but he was proud of it none the less.

"And the warden was always playing this _dreadful_ classical music!" She had been going on and on about anything and everything—they both had—but the asylum—and occasionally her father—seemed to be the main thing on her alcohol-soaked brain.

"I always figured you would like classic stuff," Sokka mumbled out as he once again ignored how weird this situation was.

"No, that was Zuzu's deal," Azula replied, hiccuping several times as she drank more.

"Then what _is_ the princess' favorite genre?" Sokka drawled before hiccuping himself.

Azula leaned closer as if she was sharing some secret and Sokka leaned in as well.

" _Pop_ ," she said, giggling heavily as Sokka stared in surprise. She had never seen the type, but then again, he had never really paid attention to her other than to spit in her general direction.

"Didn't...didn't see that one," he admitted as he drained his bottle and reached for a new one. The mini bar in his room was well stocked, but he was beginning to think they would drink it dry before tomorrow.

"And what is the peasant's?" Azula questioned cheerily, missing Sokka's flinch obliviously in her stupor.

He had almost forgotten her biting nicknames for everyone.

Especially his.

"Pop..." He said slowly as he admitted a fact he had only ever voiced to his closest of friends. It didn't really help his manly image—in his mind at least—to like such a genre, but he enjoyed it none the less.

" _Really_?" Azula's golden eyes seemed to _ignite_ at his answer and she leaned closer, the whiskey she had been drinking—along with all the other previous drinks—heavy on her breath as it tickled his face.

"Y-yeah," Sokka slurred, somewhat defensive.

"Favorite food?"

"Steak."

"Steak." Azula agreed, smiling wickedly in her own drunken state.

"Favorite m-movie?"

"Phantom of the Opera."

Sokka's face told her all she needed to know that his answer was the same as hers.

"We share some _scary_ similarities..." Sokka managed to say as he took a rather strong drink from his bottle. The sheer weirdness of the entire night was reason enough to waste himself in booze.

"I think it's _hot_ waterboy," Azula sounded far too girly, but neither could really recognize the effects of the alcohol by now.

"Yeah?" He asked, unaware how close the two were by this point—Azula was all but in his lap.

"Yeah," Azula agreed huskily as Sokka shifted towards her. Azula shifted towards him as well and their lips met.

On a scale of one out of ten on drunken kisses, Azula easily rated a hundred. It was heavenly and their mindless stupor only made it seem to last longer as the gentle kiss gravitated towards something stronger. Sokka felt the alcohol pouring through his veins give him a boldness that only it could provide.

His hands found their way to her hips, then her ass; her hands twisted their way across his chest and shoulders. They groaned in pleasure together and Azula threw a leg over Sokka and straddled him easily as the kissing deepened and the hand-play grew bolder.

Azula hissed when he touched her and Sokka bucked when her hands found him as well. Soon he was on his back, his shirt off, and Azula was sucking at his neck while her hands did other _wonderful_ things.

They continued the heated kissing and touching until Azula let out a long, sensual moan after Sokka did something truly pleasurable to her. That noise was all it took and soon they seemed to just teleport from the main room to the bedroom in no time at all.

The last semi-sane thought that Sokka had before his mind was consumed in animalistic bliss was that what he was doing was weird.

But he didn't care.


	3. Chapter 3

It was early when Sokka stirred and he groaned loudly as the hangover from hell assaulted his brain the second he was conscious. He tried rolling over to smother his head in the pillows of his bed, only to realize he was firmly glued to something soft and incredibly warm.

Smiling, he leaned over and kissed the warm bundle on the back of her neck, causing her to moan softly in her sleep.

He froze.

That wasn't his girlfriend's moan.

Oh _fuck_.

The memories—and there were a _lot_ of them—of the previous night suddenly flooded back into his consciousness. The devastating discovery, the heartache, the drinking, the fighting, more drinking, more fighting...the oddly comforting camaraderie that he had shared with Azula.

And the drunken sex.

He _definitely_ remembered the drunken sex.

How the hell they had broken the fridge was better left in the still foggy part of his mind.

Paying damages would be a nightmare.

Suddenly, his phone began to ring and Sokka swore and climbed out of the twisted sheets before he dug around on the floor for the device. Finding it, he blanched when he saw the caller ID, but he answered it all the same.

He wouldn't be a coward twice.

"Hello?" He said coolly, though his voice cracked only slightly in pain at the end.

"Can we talk?"

"I think everything that needed to be said was said already." He had gotten the message loud and clear when he had walked in on her the other day.

" _You_ never gave me the chance to explain!" Her voice sounded pained and upset, but Sokka didn't really give a damn anymore.

"I'm pretty sure fucktoy number one thousand was the one who cutoff _your_ chance to speak to me!"

"I was saying _goodbye_ to him!"

"Well if that's how you say _goodbye_ , then I would love to know how you said _hello_! Did you suck him off more enthusiastically?"

"Sok-"

"YOU FUCKING LYING BITCH!"

Now the emotion was starting to seep out of the blanketing fog of his amazing post-sex euphoria. He had bottled it up—and possibly unleashed some of it on Azula last night if his sore body meant anything—and now he was ready to dump it out.

"I LOVED YOU! I TRUSTED YOU!"

"I can't help my urg-"

"I MEAN HONESTLY! FAMILY?! WHAT THE HELL WOMAN!?"

"I'm on my hands and knees here Sokkie! Plea-"

"OH GREAT, SO YOU'RE SAYING _GOODBYE_ TO FUCKBOY AGAIN RIGHT? OR IS IT _GOOD MORNING_ THIS TIME!?"

"Sokka-"

She was crying, he was sobbing, and neither had reached a conclusion. In short it was a messy break-up call that looked only to get worse.

Until the phone was gently taken from him.

"Hello." Azula's cool voice said simply as she stood beside Sokka, her unashamed nudity reminding him both that he was stark nude as well and that there had _definitely_ been at least a physical reason for their little romp last night.

"Who-"

"I don't much care to know who you are or what you're currently doing to whoever the hell it is you're, well _doing_ , but I must digress that you are indeed a whore and that Sokka no longer needs you in his life."

"..."

"That being said, I'm going to _enthusiastically_ fuck the man you should have treated better and you may return to your sloppy breakfast."

"..."

"Just food for thought by the way, has he ever broken both headboards, the bed-frame, _and_ all four bedposts while fucking you? No? Just _me_? Oh my!"

Azula was grinning while Sokka stared at her in wonder. He could only imagine what his ex was thinking judging by her unmoving silence on the other end of the line.

"Fuck off bitch." Azula said and abruptly ended the call on what suspiciously sounded like a pained shriek.

Azula had been cool and collected throughout the entire call, her voice very much the same as it had been when she had verbally tormented Sokka and his friends throughout their high school years. Her tone at the end of the phone call however had been full of emotion, the kind that showed she wasn't wearing a mask over her thoughts and feelings, but was speaking from the heart.

"Y-you..."

"Yes, you're welcome." Azula said, briefly appearing to be her old self again before her eyes dropped to the floor and she seemed to shrink in upon herself. She moved away from him and began to hunt for her clothes.

She had barely bent over to grab her bra before Sokka tackled her into the bed, kissing her heavily. Azula returned it fiercely and without the drunken cloud from the previous night, Sokka was _very_ much aware of the feelings coursing through him.

There was a lot of lust and desire, but he felt something he had thought would never return to him after Yue. He had fooled himself to believe it was there with Suki and he had lied to himself about it concerning his most recent girlfriend, but with Azula it was bright and undeniable.

There was the wondrous sensation of boyish attraction. The story-like feeling that rarely was seen and hardly ever experienced. It was amazing.

"This is crazy," Azula breathed out as she nipped his shoulder, causing him to shudder heavily.

"I know," Sokka agreed as they fell off the bed and rolled into the wall, cracking it slightly as Azula shoved him into it.

"I didn't think you'd take me up on the offer when I said I was going to fuck you."

"Can't let you think I'm not interested," Sokka told her as he touched her, causing a delicious spark to run up her spine and cause her body to shake everywhere.

"I think everyone in this _building_ knows you're interested." She smiled seductively and grabbed him. Sokka didn't really remember the actual feeling of shoving her through the wall and into the closet, but somehow they ended up in the small closet with plaster dust all over their bodies.

"I hope they can handle round two," Sokka told her.

"I hope this _room_ can handle round two."

* * *

"Damn." Sokka said as they exited the hotel _many_ hours later. It was almost evening and both he and Azula were starving.

"All in all, the damages weren't _that_ bad." Azula said as she blushed lightly—whether it was due to his hand around hers or their recent activities, he did not know—while eying the bill in Sokka's other hand.

"Huh? Oh I don't care about _that_ ," Sokka said with a dismissive wave, "I'm talking about the _alcohol_ bill." He moved the paper closer to her face so she could see the smaller piece of paper stapled to the mass of papers in his hand.

Azula felt her face blanch as she red the information on the sheet. "That has to be wrong..."

"I know! I could have sworn we drank more."

Azula glanced at him in startled surprise, there had been a _lot_ of drinks on that tab.

"What?"

"Nothing."

Deciding to let it go, the two talked about random things until they found themselves at a diner that apparently served both the best steaks in the region and the largest. Growling hungrily, they decided that this place would indeed meet their needs.

"So," Sokka said as they waited at their table, orders already taken and drinks on the way, "why were those guys after you last night?"

Azula seemed to withdraw in on herself briefly as she stared at the table. Sokka waited patiently and she seemed to appreciate it, for she gave him a brief smile before grimacing.

"It's been a rough...well...it's just been hard...financially since...um..." Azula was obviously having a hard time saying what she was trying to say and Sokka quickly deduced the destination of the conversation.

"He's still in prison last I heard..." Sokka said softly.

"I know."

"Zuko-"

"He told me I could die for all _he_ cared," Azula said simply, yet the hurt—however well she thought she hid it—was still there, barely, in the depths of her eyes as she said those words.

It was no secret that Azula had been cruel to her brother. Zuko had obviously given no quarter when everything had changed at the end of their senior year. With Ozai in prison and Zuko being the eldest, he had assumed control of his father's company and become the head of the Yan household. Many had thought it wise to send Azula to an insane asylum—he had certainly not complained at the time—in an effort to fix the damage that her father had done to her mind.

Now that he thought about it, no one had ever asked Zuko about Azula in years. It had just become a subject better left buried like his father's life sentence.

"I...I want to..."

"Can we leave?" Azula asked, her mood souring as she stared at all the happy patrons around them. "I think I lost my appetite..."

"Sure."

The waiter arrived a few minutes later with their drinks only to find the table empty.

* * *

"It's just...been a hard time you know?" Azula said, her pain covered and her resolve strengthened by the drink in her hand. They had been talking for several hours now and Sokka had been able to piece together most of her story through the numerous re-tellings and what he could remember from their conversations the other night.

The asylum had been hell, that much was clear. Dark rooms, drugged food, screaming, and a host of other things had only increased her madness until she had finally broke.

Azula had broke while already broken.

The shell of the once former terror had lived on in that hellhole until she was admitted full sanity and released, almost ten years after she had been admitted. The nightmare didn't end there, because not only was she burdened with the weight of the horrors in the asylum, she also had to find a way to live on her own. Zuko had sent her from the doorstep of his home, making it clear that she was still insane to him, no matter what the doctors had said.

She had been wandering ever since, cut off from everything.

"I can't believe he...he would do _that_."

Sokka had known Zuko to be mean—the feud he had briefly had with Aang was testament to that—but he had never seen him be cruel.

This was possibly even worse than being cruel.

It was being a monster.

"I can." Azula said simply while she took another strong swallow from her bottle.

Sokka, deciding words wouldn't help much at the moment, chose to lightly kiss the back of her neck in a comforting—as opposed to a sensual—way while massaging her shoulders gently. They had been out on the dock for awhile and Azula had tensed up a lot while sitting beside him.

"This feels nice," Azula said softly as she made small noises that Sokka tried to ignore for the moment. Her body heated up and she shifted so that she was in his lap rather than sitting on the deck beside him.

"Just enjoy it, no talking." He told her softly while he continued his ministrations to her shoulders, back, and neck. His hands quickly worked the tension and stress out of her and his gentle kisses warmed her sullen mood up.

"What are we Sokka?" Azula said after Sokka had stopped his massage and simply held her protectively. He knew neither of them had consumed that much alcohol, so this had to be an honest question rather than just some drunken rambling.

"I...I honesty don't know." He admitted, unsure as to what he now considered himself when it came to the raven haired beauty in his arms.

"What do you think of me?" She asked, twisting slightly to stare up at him with her yellow eyes.

If someone had asked him a few years ago what he thought about Azula, he would have said he thought her insane and dangerous. If they had asked him a few weeks ago, he would have probably told them she was a demented tormentor. If they had asked him this morning, he would have responded with a rather lewd comment.

But if they asked him right now?

"I think you're a terribly misunderstood woman that did some bad things, but I also think you're the most beautiful woman I've ever had the pleasure of spending time with." Everything he said was true, he hadn't lied. The thought of saying the last part would have made him gag only a few days ago, but now it made his heart beat faster.

"I think you're a nicer, kinder, man than I ever gave you credit for all those years ago...but I also think you're..."

Azula, not exactly one for words of endearment, chose to instead lean up and capture Sokka's mouth with her own.

He groaned into her mouth as she purposely grinded against his lap and before he knew it his jacket had fallen off his shoulders and the rest of their clothes seemed to be ready to join it.

" _Here?_ " Sokka asked, stunned.

He and Suki had certainly been rather wild in high school, but even they had never done something so promiscuous as having rambunctious sex out in an open public place.

" _Here_." Azula purred and then her head moved and Sokka suddenly didn't give a damn about the location they were in.

He only gave a damn about Azula.

* * *

"I was wondering something," Azula said as she and Sokka lay together in bed hours later, their bodies glistening in a thin layer of sweat.

"Hm?" He said as he kissed her neck in a post-glow show of affection. They had only broken a few pieces of furniture in their new hotel room, but he was still tired enough to stop for the night.

Well...maybe just a break.

"Do you want me to go with you to the reunion, or is this our final night?" She tried to say it calmly, but Sokka could tell she was nervous and afraid of his answer. In truth, he hadn't even thought of the reunion since he had discovered his ex cheating on him.

"Do you..." He rolled over so he was smothering her, "honestly..." He nipped her ear and felt her shudder pleasantly."Think..." She leaned up and they kissed softly for a brief moment before parting so that their faces were only centimeters apart, "I would want to end this?"

The hope in her eyes made him ache painfully. He was determined to break Zuko's jaw if he saw him at the reunion.

"No." Her voice was small and vulnerable as she fought back the tears.

"You're _mine_ Azula and I don't plan on leaving you behind." The words would have been alien to him just such a short time ago. Now they felt not only right, but destined. He just knew it somehow.

"Fuck S-Sokka..." Azula whimpered as the tears came. Not one for such emotion, she shoved herself up into him again and kissed him fiercely. Though it had barely been thirty minutes, they soon found themselves heating back up for round seven.

A short break indeed.

* * *

"Attention passengers, we will be landing in Republic City in approximately fifteen minutes, please fasten your seat belts and make sure your trays are in their upright positions, thank you."

Sokka groggily woke up as the attendant turned off her microphone. Azula, snuggled tight to his side, groaned as well and removed her headphones to glare at the open window beside her which showed a marvelous view of the vast city growing all the larger below them.

"Can the plane turn around? I'm far too comfortable to move," She complained as she grumpily burrowed her head deeper into his chest.

"I don't think the other passengers would take to that too kindly," Sokka said with a grin as he wrapped his arm around her in a way that was comfortable to him, but also comforting to her.

"Fuck them."

"That's quite a mouth you have," Sokka teased while using his other hand to fasten both of their seat belts individually.

" _You_ would know."

Sokka winced as an older woman behind them gasped in shock while a younger man a few seats ahead turned around to give Sokka a congratulatory wink.

He definitely would have to keep Azula from saying anything to Katara while half-awake.

Oh shit.

Katara.

He really had to stop drinking, it was starting to inhibit him from properly planning ahead...

Then again.

"Miss, I need four of your strongest drinks please," Sokka told a passing attendant suddenly.

"Of course sir," She said, thinking Sokka was just nervous about the landing and hurried to get his request before the liquor cabinet was locked up.

"I'm not doubling up right before we go out in public," Azula said as she slowly began to wake up—bitterly—and began to prepare herself for the landing and the upcoming chaos of the airport.

"They're not for you. They're for me."

"Why?" Azula asked as she felt an unidentifiable sense of dread seep into her.

"My sister and Aang are waiting for us down there..." Sokka said as he felt Azula tense up so tight that he feared she was having a heart attack.

"..."

"..."

"Tell that woman to get me the same when she comes back."

* * *

"Where are they?" Katara demanded as she stood in the waiting area outside of the international gate. Sokka should have landed by now.

"I'm sure they'll be here soon honey," Aang told her comfortingly as he waited beside her. He had a gut feeling that his brother-in-law and his girlfriend would be arriving any minute. He had told his wife this many times, she just hadn't listened to him.

He hadn't told her that his gut was also saying that they were about to have trouble. He didn't understand it, but he trusted his instincts.

And his instincts told him to run for the hills.

"There they are!" Katara cried as she saw her brother exit the gate with a woman on his arm. The relief Aang should have been feeling never came, only a growing sense of dread as he saw Sokka's nervous behavior and slow stride towards them.

Katara, incredibly animated in her waving and hollering, decided she could wait no longer and ran towards the duo. As if he needed further evidence that something was wrong, Sokka and his date slowed down to the point that they had basically stopped moving.

Aang felt his stomach freeze once he finally recognized the woman whose hand Sokka was gripping tight with his own. She had changed a bit with age, but her sharp features were still there.

Oh fuck.

Katara froze in stunned horror as she recognized the woman a milisecond later.

Oh _fuck_.


	4. Chapter 4

"Hey sis!" Sokka said, trying to be as cheery as possible. Azula was frozen rigid beside him in a mixture of fear, terror, and bubbling rage. The latter he knew she was fighting against, but Katara could easily change that.

She still hadn't moved, though her hands were tight balls and she was shaking heavily.

"Sokka! How was the flight!" Aang said, like Sokka trying to keep the mood light as he shook his brother-in-law's hand. He then awkwardly bowed to Azula, who returned it with the same level of awkwardness.

Katara still hadn't said anything.

"How's the city treating you?" Sokka asked as he glanced at his sister nervously.

"Oh it's good! There's tons of restaurants and...uh...things! We have lots of things to do here!"

"That's...good."

Katara still hadn't moved."

"How's uh...politics treating you?" Aang said, noticing Katara's face was growing faintly blue while her hands had turned a deep purple.

"It's good, I should have the governorship in the bag if things go well," Sokka said, eyes still on his sister as was Aang's. Azula merely stayed quiet and let Sokka shield her in case—well really _when—_ something happened.

"And the inventing?"

"I just got a-"

"YOU CUNT-EYED, SEAL-FUCKING, BACKSTABBING, BITCH-ASS, SPIRITS DAMNED MOTHERFUCKER!"

That, Sokka mused, was the shit hitting the fan...and then going through the fucking ceiling.

"Ba-"

"SHUT UP AANG!"

"Yes ma'am!" The guru cried out, cowed as he backed up several feet.

"YOU!" Katara boomed as she advanced on Sokka as if he was the lowliest slime on earth.

"Told you she'd blow you away..." Sokka said weakly.

"IS THAT SOME SORT OF JOKE!?"

"Sort of..."

Katara's face had gone black with rage as she stared at Sokka, then at Azula, and then back at Sokka.

"What. The. Hell." Katara demanded, her voice deadly quiet and Sokka briefly hoped she had managed to calm down somewhat.

"We're in a relationship," Sokka said, trying to calm his enraged sister. Aang was still off to the side, too terrified to even register the weird turn of events.

"WHAT THE HELL SOKKA!?"

Looks like she was still pissed.

"We-"

"WHEN!? HOW!? _WHY_!?" Katara was struggling to understand what she had done to anger the spirits in such a way as to place such a terrible event in her life.

"Well...we just sort of work." Sokka admitted, not really lying—Azula had agreed with him on the plane to just pretend she had been dating him the entire time to avoid any embarrassment.

"YOU SORT OF WORK!? WHAT DOES THAT EVEN MEAN!?"

"Honey-"

"SHUT UP AANG!"

"Katara, look-" Sokka said, trying to reason with his sister.

"Break up with her!"

" _What_?" Azula and Sokka said in mutual stunned shock.

Katara paused briefly to catch her breath, screaming really did take a toll on a person regardless of how angry they were.

"She's just using you Sokka!"

"No, she's with me for me Katara!"

"She's not good for you Sokka, can't you see that?" Katara couldn't believe her brother was doing this. It was insane!

"How would you even know that?" Sokka demanded, unbelieving in his sister's blind anger.

"Because she tried to _kill_ me!"

"I find it amusing that you think you're worth that much of my attention," Azula said coldly, her eyes flashing.

"You set a building _on fire_!" Katara cried as she turned to face Azula completely. Aang chose this moment to grab Sokka and pull him away from the two arguing females.

"We're safer over here." Aang told him as they waited off to the side.

"I thought you were the peace-guy?" Sokka questioned.

"My talents can only do so much..."

"True."

Katara and Azula were starting to get venomous.

"I know you're just using him!"

"Only in ways _you'll_ never realize!"

"YOU SLUT!"

"Oh don't get petty just because I'm fucking your brother better than you could dream of fucking your monk." Azula shot back with a roll of her eyes.

"This migh-"

SMACK!

Azula stared at Katara in shock as both Sokka and Aang held their breaths in fear of what was to come.

They weren't dissapointed.

"You bitch..." Azula muttered as she tenderly touched her cheek before her own hand went flying.

SMACK!

SMACK!

SMACK!

THUD!

WHAM!

The two females had openly started brawling now as Katara ripped at Azula's hair and Azula laid out vicious strikes to Katara's face with her nails. Several airport security guards arrived and seemed to pause in confusion, unsure as to what they could do in the face of such fury.

"This...is about what I expected in all honesty..." Sokka admitted as he watched Katara slam Azula's head into the floor before the raven haired female kicked the brunette in the stomach as hard as she could.

"Azula...really?" Aang asked in confusion.

"I really do like her Aang..."

"It's just so weird..." Aang said finally, not truly against Sokka's relationship with Azula, but uncomfortable none the less.

"Yeah..." Sokka agreed, knowing that it didn't really make a lot of sense—even to him.

"What are we going to do about them?" Aang asked.

"What those guards are doing. Wait until one of them knocks the other out." Sokka said simply, knowing that getting in-between the two would surely lead to death.

WHAM!

With a tired sigh, Azula looked up at Sokka after finally knocking out Katara. "We are _never_ doing this 'lets let her deal with it in her own way' business ever again..."

"Agreed." Sokka and Aang said in unison as the guards, deciding everything was under control—and possibly fearing for their safety—headed back to their stations.

"Let's get back to the house before she wakes up."

* * *

"Just tell me this is a joke."

They were scattered throughout the main living room in Aang and Katara's island retreat and semi-palace. Aang was sitting lotus style on a foot rest, trying to find inner calm while talking with Sokka. Sokka and Azula had occupied a plush couch and had been returning the calm speech. Katara had sat down in a large recliner and had remained silent until she had suddenly thrown out that question.

Her sudden outburst might have something to do with the glass of hard alcohol in her hand. Aang and Katara rarely drank, but when they did Katara was known to be the heavier drinker.

"It's not." Sokka said simply, though a trace of frustration and anger was seeping in. "Why can't you just accept that we're together?" He demanded as he turned to look at his sister while his girlfriend gave him a soft squeeze of the hand.

"Because of _who she is_." Katara said bullheadedly while glaring at the raven haired female who, despite her new state of vulnerability, returned the heated glare with a cool look of disinterest. Sadly this just seemed to anger Katara more.

"She's changed, even _you_ can clearly see that." Sokka stated coldly as he glanced at Aang. The younger man was looking more calm than he had at the airport, but he was also still showing signs of deep stress most likely coming from the battle between the Sui siblings.

"She's an evil, lying, monster! That's what she is!" Katara spat as she sat her—now mostly empty—bottle down and leaned forward to glare harder at the couple.

"Kat-" Sokka started to say, only to get interrupted by a hand on his thigh.

"I was a rather cruel woman in our younger years, but-" Azula started to say, but she also was cut off.

"Shut up! Everything you say is _always_ a lie! Sokka, how can you date _that_!"

"Zuko was a jerk to us for _three years_ and we still warmed up to him by the end!" Sokka argued, trying to use his ace in the hole to turn this ugly debate. He had known that Katara would take the news badly, but she was being completely unreasonable _and_ she was insulting Azula with such disdain that he feared another brawl would erupt.

"That's because he was actually _nice_ and _human_!" Katara snarled.

"Zuzu did just as much damage to the school as I," Azula challenged while gripping Sokka's hand tighter.

"At least he _regretted_ it! At least he _can_ regret things! She's not _human_ Sokka! She's a _monster_ and _always_ will be! I forbid you to date her! I forbid it!" Katara shot out rapid fire as her anger hit it's highest point right as her frustrated mind snapped as well.

Azula actually had a stunned look on her face as she tried to form a retort. Her mouth opened and closed. Open and closed.

A tear formed on the edge of her left eye, but—by what seemed to be sheer force of will—it did not fall from her porcelain features. Suddenly Azula's face shot towards the ground, her mouth mumbled something in the form of a thank you to Aang and then she stood up awkwardly and stumbled quickly out of the room.

Sokka glared at his sister as he watched her leave. Even Aang looked slightly angry at his wife as he sighed heavily.

"What?" Katara demanded, unnerved by the sudden silence and the looks she was getting.

"I like her Katara. Regardless of what you think, I like her. I want to spend all my time with her and find out everything there is to know about Azula Yan. Unlike you, I won't be blinded by the past to inhibit my future." With that, Sokka stood up and left a stunned Katara to follow after his girlfriend.

Stopping at the door, he looked over his shoulder and glared at his sister one last time. "I don't honestly give a damn about you're misgivings. The way you treated her was worse than we _ever_ treated Zuko. Don't bother talking to me until you can accept our relationship. Thanks for letting us stay here, Aang."

Katara watched her brother leave in wonder.

* * *

"You okay?" Sokka asked gently as he closed the door behind him while entering Azula's room. They both had been given rooms near each other, but Azula had dragged Sokka and his belongings to her room immediately upon their arrival.

That had probably led to Katara drinking in the living room.

"Fine." Azula was curled up around herself on the bed, her back to him. He sighed painfully and moved to sit behind her, his legs on either side of her as she reluctantly leaned back into him.

"She hurt you..."

"I'm fine." Azula's voice was steely, but he had spent enough time around her to recognize the painful tone buried down deep as well.

Rather than push her, he leaned forward and nuzzled her neck before lightly kissing her shoulder. He continued this and began to trail small kisses down both collar bones while his hands moved to trace small random patterns on her leg and stomach.

Azula said nothing for some time and Sokka merely contented himself to calming her down. When he felt the tears start to fall, he stopped his actions and wrapped his arms around her waist and turned her to him. She buried her raven head into his shoulder and actually _sobbed._ It wasn't a soft crying or even wailing. She was flat-out sobbing in gut-wrenching spasms of emotion.

He held her tight and rocked gently as she poured out more emotion than he had ever seen her in all the years he had known her. It left him both shocked and angry. He had never known her to be this broken and he also had never known he could feel such anger towards his own sister.

Perhaps he could relate to her and Zuko now.

Shuddering at his terrible private thought, Sokka heard the door handle rattle lightly, only to stop before it could actually open the door. The knob went loose and whoever had been on the other side hurriedly walked away.

"Mother won't go away..." Azula whispered, pained, in his shoulder. Sokka tore his attention away from the mysterious person and looked down at his girlfriend. Her eyes were bloodshot and her hair was a mess. Her face was caked in ruined make-up and tears.

He still thought she looked unbelievably beautiful.

"She...she said the same things...as...as K-Katara..." Azula whimpered, so completely unlike herself that Sokka was slightly terrified for her health.

"Don't worry over Katara...she's just-"

"No!" Azula's eyes closed briefly before opening again and Sokka felt his heart both melt and break again. "D-don't you s-see!? She's just like _her_!"

"W-who?"

"The...I...I..." Azula looked to be at odds with herself and Sokka tried to pull her closer to him in an effort to comfort her.

"What?"

"I'm a monster..."

"No you're not," Sokka assured her as he kissed her forehead, trying to sway her.

"Yes I am!" Azula looked just as crazy and unnervingly mad as she had on the last day of school. "I don't _feel_ Sokka! I can't be human! I'm a monster! A monster! I. Am. A. Monster!"

SMACK!

"You..." Azula stared at Sokka in awe and confusion, her mental state preventing her from even feeling the pain from the slap. "...are the most _beautiful_ , most _amazing_ , and undoubtedly _wonderful_ woman I have ever been around..."

"S-Sokka..." Azula looked stunned.

"And if you think for a _second_ that you are still a monster or that you could _ever_ feel nothing, then you are a bigger dumbass than myself..."

With that, he leaned down and kissed her as hard as he could. His passion for her, his attraction, his lust, and his heartache were all bundled up and tossed into the kiss. Her eyes widened in shock, then closed in pleasure and joyous acceptance.

When the two broke for air—and it was some time before they did that—Azula looked up at him with something resembling her original cool sense of calm.

"I don't deserve you."

"I don't deserve you either." He replied truthfully.

They kissed again and Azula clung to him even tighter than before.

"Promise me..." She whispered into his ear as she tried to keep her voice steady. "Promise me...that I'm not a monster...that I'm _real_...that _this_ is real..."

"You're not and this is real." Sokka said softly and felt her shudder with something akin to intense joy.

"T-thank you..." She sighed heavily before laying her head down on his shoulder and shoving him onto the bedspread.

"Anytime princess," He felt her stiffen up, then she giggled only _so_ slightly.

He felt like he was on the top of the world.

"Hold me peasant...please"

He did.

Azula fell asleep soon after, her body drained and the alcohol really hitting her now. She curled tighter into his body as if he was the last safe haven and her very soul was a ship trying to avoid the crashing waves of life from sending her to the bottom.

Sokka didn't let go even when sleep claimed him.

He would never let go.


	5. Chapter 5

The sound of someone banging on their door woke Sokka up sluggishly from his contented sleep. Azula was still curled up tight around him and he made no move to untangle himself from her warm and inviting frame.

"SOKKA!"

He knew that voice...

"OPEN UP THIS FREAKING DOOR LOVEBIRDS!"

Azula groaned and burrowed deeper into Sokka as she tried to remain in the land of dreams just a few moments longer. The man being used as her personal pillow blushed heavily just as the door finally flew open. Standing in the doorway was a _very_ excited Toph Bei Fong, who burst in with a grin the size of the entire Earth Kingdom stretched out across her features.

Sokka opened his mouth to say something, but no words came out.

Toph grinned all the wider as she took in the sight before her. No one really knew how the blind girl could 'see' everything so well, but somehow she always seemed to know where everyone was and what they all were doing. She had claimed that due to her blindness, her other senses were so honed that she rarely felt truly 'blind' when it came to seeing anything.

"Satoru owes me twenty bucks!" She cheered while choosing to lean against the door frame and wink mischievously at Sokka. "Way to _go_ Snoozles!"

"Y-you're not m-mad?" Sokka asked in surprise and relief as he felt Azula start to stir at last.

Toph titled her head to the side looking somewhat uncertain in the question in general and her answer in particular. "Yeah, it's weird." She admitted, "but it's not like _I_ have to see it _and_ it is _your_ life...plus I'm not exactly the poster child of doing what's right."

"T-thanks Toph," Sokka said, genuine, as Toph grinned again.

"Hey, we gave Zuko a chance and look how well that paid off!" She smirked at Azula's scowl, "Plus it pisses Katara off and I _love_ that."

Azula's scowl vanished and Sokka realized that the subject in question had just shifted his girlfriend's opinion of the blind girl up a few points.

"You enjoy torturing the she-whale too?" Azula asked.

"She-whale? Oh that's a _good_ one!" Toph cackled as she leaned off the door frame. "Anyways, hurry up and get dressed lovey doo-doo's, Satoru and I are getting grub. You comin'?"

"Of course!" Sokka cried, unable to deny his stomach food. Plus Toph always found the best places to gorge on all-you-can-eat buffets.

"She took that well," Azula commented after Toph had left and the door had been shut. The raven haired girl somehow managed to pull herself out of the warmth of their bed and began to strip her clothes off one by one.

Somehow, Sokka was certain she was doing it slow on purpose.

"Coming _dear_?" Azula teased as she leaneddown to pick up her bundle of clothes, providing Sokka with a _spectacular_ view. Sokka had to remind himself to breath as his very much naked girlfriend walked—more like sashayed—across the room and dumped her clothes in a small laundry bag they had brought with them. Just like before, she was certain to give him a _great_ view once again.

"Y-yes!" Sokka shouted as he fumbled with his clothes while Azula—smirking—strode into the bathroom to start a shower.

If anything, Sokka moved even _faster_ once he heard the water start falling.

* * *

"Real romance needs alcohol," Toph agreed as she dug into a concoction of steak, bread, and molten cheese that threatened to topple over. The mountain of meat reached so far above her head that it seemed like at any moment it might come crashing down like an avalanche if she dared to add another piece of beefy delight to it.

She ignored this of course.

"Love at first sight is _so_ mundane and cliché," Azula complained as she also dug into her wings. While fried chicken and some of the other assorted 'delicacies' at their table was nothing new to her, she had never had them prepared in such a way as this restaurant. She actually found that she vastly preferred the dishes compared to their predecessors during her previous dining experiences.

"I _know_ ," Toph said as she grabbed at her drink and took a healthy—and 'unladylike'—slurp from the beverage. "When I first saw Satoru, I thought he was _okay_ , but I definitely wouldn't be screwing him blue like I am now."

Azula, who had become uncommonly loose at the tongue while speaking with Toph—the pre-lunch alcohol _definitely_ helping here—coughed vigorously at the unexpected comment.

"Oh _please_ , like _you_ aren't getting your pipes worked princess!" Toph roared cheekily as she smirked at Azula.

Sokka looked stunned.

Satoru looked embarrassed, but also used to it. He had been with Toph for _years_ after all and knew her well enough to have seen such a conversation coming.

"She's _very_ open when she's drinking..."

"Well hedoes live up to his reputation as a _wild man_ ," Azula said with a devilishly teasing smirk towards Sokka.

Toph laughed wickedly as she winked—as unnerving as it already was for him—at Sokka, "Ol' virgin pants over there actually lives up to satisfaction?"

"Our last hotel bill was-" Azula leaned in close to whisper to Toph's ear. The blind girl's eyes betrayed no emotion, but the rigid shock her body went into revealed all Satoru needed to know Sokka had done some damage.

" _Damn_ Snoozles, you _really_ fucked that up!" Toph laughed while leaving it plainly obvious what she was _really_ referring.

"What have I done?" Sokka groaned as he placed his head down on the table while nursing his now growing headache with alcohol.

"Something amazing lover," Azula assured him while Toph snickered.

" _Lover_?"

"Just to piss Katara off," She assured her while sipping again at her drink.

"Oh Sokka she's _way_ better than Suki!"

Azula suddenly narrowed her eyes, "Suki? The brown haired girl?"

Shit.

"Toph, I think you nee-"

"Shut up Sato! I can handle my liquor fine!" Toph snapped with just a hint of a slur while Azula glared at Sokka.

Shit.

"You slept with Suki?"

"Uh-"

Azula scowled and reached into her pockets, "Thank you _Toph_ for the drinks, I'll have to catch up with _you_ later." She said pointedly before placing some money on the table and stalking out of the restaurant with just the barest hint of pain on her face.

 _Shit_.

" _Thanks_ Toph!" Sokka snapped as he took off after his pissed off girlfriend.

Toph just eyed the money on the table and signaled for another round.

"You really should apologize," Satoru muttered as he sipped at his own drink at a _much_ more moderate pace than his own girlfriend.

"I _could_ go apologize," Toph agreed as she leaned over to whisper in his ear, "or I _could_ fuck you brainless in the bathroom.

Satoru felt his face grow red while Toph lightly touched him before teasingly excusing herself. The short woman than walked casually—a little _too_ casually, damn her—down towards the bathroom at the back of the restaurant.

Well, when she put it like _that_...

* * *

"Azula!" Sokka demanded as he banged on the door roughly to their room. He had yet to get an answer and the silence on the other end of the door disturbed him deeply. "Open this door!"

Silence.

Banging.

Silence.

Creaking.

Sokka stared in wonder at the sight before him. Azula was glaring at him, or at least trying to. Her hair was a mess and she had obviously been pulling at it. Her clothes were wrinkled and tear stained. But her face...

Azula's face was covered in tears.

Briefly he wondered if this was some sort of record and then immediately felt ashamed of himself for thinking that.

"What the hell do _you_ want?" She demanded as she stared at the source of her pain.

Sokka didn't even leave time for her to react, he just charged her and tackled her to the floor. Azula tried to scream in surprise or outrage; he wasn't sure, but whatever the case she was silenced all the same as he placed his lips on hers.

The same electric explosion of nerve endings, the same cosmic implosion that erupted between them every time they touched, every time they kissed, every time they fucked...it was _still_ there. The two were frozen for a mere half second after the initial kiss, than Azula was pushing on Sokka.

But she wasn't pushing him away.

"I'm sorry," She said as the same words came out of his own while they sat up somewhat. They both blushed and Sokka cradled her face in his hands.

"I _did_ sleep with Suki," Sokka told her and watched the pain flash across her face, he immediately kissed both cheeks before her lips to comfort her. " _But_ , she was _nowhere_ near as amazing as you are Azula..."

To most girls, such a statement would have been a blatant lie to earn forgiveness. But to Azula, who was a master at reading and giving lies, she felt her heart break all the more towards her former foe.

Sokka was speaking the truth, she knew it as clearly as she knew the sky was blue.

Despite her record, despite his 'amazing' past romance, Sokka held her in a higher regard than his childhood crush.

"I treasure you Azula..." Sokka whispered as he pulled her closer to him.

She had never felt treasured before...

"Take me."

Sokka froze from where he had been about to kiss the raven haired woman and eyed her somewhat uncertainly. "W-what?"

"Damn it Sokka...I _need_ you!" Azula said and forced him to kiss her deeply, which he happily obliged to. Azula quickly made it clear with her body what she wanted and Sokka soon made up for lost time—it had been a little over a day after all—as they began to remove the others clothing.

"Hey Sokka-" Aang started to say as he walked into the room, only to freeze in horror at the half dressed state of the furiously intimate couple before him.

Neither noticed Aang or even made a move to slow down. If anything, they were increasing their speed to their ultimate destination. The balding man quickly slammed the door shut—which also had zero effect on breaking the couple from their euphoria—before stumbling off down the hall.

"Aang?" Katara asked hours later after discovering her shivering husband squatting in a corner of his study.

Her husband, looking like he had seen a ghost, merely muttered to himself in some sort of post-tragedy horror. He didn't even glance up at her when she gently pulled at his eyelids trying to get him to focus on her.

Huffing at his odd behavior on top of all the other weird and downright insane things she was putting up with, Katara helped him to bed and tucked him in before turning out the lights and leaving the room.

"I guess I'll just go get Bumi by myself then..."

* * *

Hours later and they were wrapped up in each others arms; their bodies were sweaty and sticky, but they didn't honestly care. To them, it was perfect.

"I know...I can be trouble at times," Azula said softly as Sokka traced his fingers up and down the thigh she had wrapped over his side.

"I can be too," Sokka consoled her as her fingernails ran trails up his back.

"I...I just have so much..."

"Shhh," Sokka whispered as he kissed her forehead. "I know you have trust issues...I do too sometimes. And I mean, yeah, our relationship _is_ pretty weird," he laughed at her pout, "but it's also pretty _great_."

Azula smiled at him and they shared a brief kiss.

A comfortable silence passed between them as they contented themselves with merely holding one another in the calm atmosphere of their room.

Private.

Safe.

Contained from everything else around them. As far as Sokka was concerned, nothing could ruin his good mood.

"Aang!?" A feminine voice called as the front door unlocked and swung open.

Sokka's eyes flew open.

"Katara?!" A heavy thud sounded as bags were dropped in the front entrance.

SHIT.

"Boom?" The voice sounded uncertain now as feet slowly shuffled from room to room in search of someone. Anyone.

 _Shitshitshitshit..._

"Where is everybody?" She was close enough to their room now that Sokka was sure of the voice's owner. He groaned.

And then immediately regretted it as the person outside their room heard him and started knocking on the door.

Azula's eyes narrowed as Sokka's face paled.

"Is that-"

"Hey! Anybody home? It's Suki guys!" The woman asked as she opened the door and stepped into the room that Sokka and Azula had _very_ recently used...on every surface...even the door.

Suki's warm smile froze once she saw the occupants in the bed and their state of dress, or undress as the case may be.

"Let's all be calm?" Sokka asked hopefully as his ex-girlfriend and current girlfriend locked eyes as an unspoken challenge was made between them.

"WHAT THE FUCK!?"


End file.
